Asia's longest-serving leader in Maldives run-off

Asia's longest-serving leader faces a democracy activist he once held as a political prisoner in a run-off vote Tuesday in the Maldives' first democratic presidential election.

President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, 71, who has led the tiny Muslim state through three decades of economic expansion but is accused of suppressing human rights, is hoping to win a seventh term in office.

The election, the first with more than one candidate on the ballot since the country gained independence from Britain in 1965, is seen as a referendum on Gayoom's policies and a test of the country's desire for change.

His challenger is Maldivian Democratic Party leader Mohamed Nasheed, who finished second in the first round of voting earlier this month in which no candidate received the required majority.

Under Gayoom, the Maldives' breathtaking beaches, crystal-clear waters and coral reefs have become among the region's most popular diving spots and tourism is the leading source of income, followed by fishing.

Gayoom's allies have accused Nasheed of seeking to spread Christianity in the increasingly conservative Muslim country of 370,000.

Nasheed denies he has a secret Christian agenda. Like most Maldivians, he is a Sunni Muslim, a requirement for all presidential candidates.

The challengers both spoke confidently of victory at late-night rallies Sunday attended by thousands of supporters who came out despite tropical monsoon downpours.

"We want to bring reform to the Maldives, reform that leaves no room for other religions," Gayoom told a cheering crowd of around 4,000 wearing white headbands. "Maldivians want change, but good change."

"God willing, we will win this election with a significant difference," said Gayoom, who received 41 percent of the Oct. 8 vote.

Nasheed, who says he was tortured as a political dissident under Gayoom's regime, won 25 percent of the vote, but predicted he would receive up to 65 percent after gaining endorsements from other opposition parties.

Gayoom has succeeded in raising doubts about Nasheed's faith in the minds of some in this Indian Ocean archipelago.

"I do believe he (Nasheed) could spread Christianity," said Aishath Sulthana, a 32-year-old mother of five who planned to vote for Gayoom.

Claims that Nasheed plans to build churches and cathedrals are "completely baseless," he told The Associated Press on the eve of the vote.

"I think the regime can confuse a fair amount of people on the islands. It is sad that (Gayoom) is using the elections to disinform these people," Nasheed said.

Still there are many who say they have not benefited from increased prosperity and are desperate for a change in leadership.

"I was six when Maumoon (Gayoom) came into power. Now I'm all gray," said Ahmed, 37, a construction worker who goes by a single name and cannot afford to buy his own home. "I want to see something else."

Around 209,000 eligible voters are expected to head to polling stations spread across 1,190 islands, about 200 of them inhabited and dozens more developed into lucrative tourist resorts, many owned by current and former Cabinet ministers.